View Post

Treating the Whole Person: Trauma-Informed Care Part 2

In Pelvic Health by Jillian GianniniLeave a Comment

By Jillian Giannini, DPT, PHRC Westlake Village Just like it was discussed in our previous post  it is not within the scope of practice for a physical therapist to treat trauma; however, educating yourself on ways to implement trauma-informed care can help you to provide a safe and conducive environment for a patient’s path to healing.    In a 2018 …

View Post

Behind the Mask: Perspective in the time of COVID

In Pelvic Health by Kim BuonomoLeave a Comment

By Kim Buonomo, DPT, PHRC Lexington We are all getting used to a new idea of normal since COVID-19 became more prevalent. Over the past few months, I’ve noticed a few things that I wanted to share. We are doing our parts at PHRC to stay safe and protect ourselves and each other by wearing masks. Below I share some …

View Post

Small Intestine Bacterial Overgrowth: Overview and Updates

In SIBO by Jandra MuellerLeave a Comment

By Jandra Mueller, DPT, MS, PHRC Encinitas SIBO, aka small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, is bacteria that is an overgrowth of the normal bacteria in your small intestine.  In today’s blog I want to provide some more education about SIBO, how we get it, test for it, treat it, and how it has made its way into pelvic health concerns as …

View Post

What is Mindfulness and How Can it Help Pelvic Pain?

In Pelvic Pain by Shannon Pacella10 Comments

By Shannon Pacella, DPT, PHRC Lexington If you’ve been a patient of mine, you probably remember me talking about the mind-body connection. This is especially important when it comes to pelvic pain and pelvic floor dysfunction. The pelvic floor muscles are innervated by the pudendal nerve which contains both motor and autonomic nerve fibers. Most other skeletal muscles (like your …

View Post

Urination Nation: How Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy Eliminates Urinary Incontinence

In Urinary Incontinence by Kim Buonomo1 Comment

By Kim Buonomo, DPT, PHRC Lexington We often see patients who report urinary incontinence as a symptom of their pelvic floor dysfunction. Incontinence is defined as the lack of voluntary control over one’s urination or defecation. Sometimes this is not the reason they seek treatment, but rather a secondary finding. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard something …

View Post

PHRC is Offering Online Mentoring and Pelvic Floor Continuing Education!

In Pelvic floor physical therapy continuing education by Stephanie Prendergast5 Comments

By Stephanie Prendergast, PHRC Cofounder As the COVID-19 pandemic continues we are adjusting to the new normal here at PHRC. Our business has been significantly affected, with many of our offices being totally closed for weeks or months. We are slowly reopening carefully and in accordance with the CDC guidelines. We launched a digital health program for patients and are …

View Post

Integrative Health & Nutrition Services Now Offered Virtually Through PHRC!

In Integrative Health and Nutrition by Jandra Mueller5 Comments

By Jandra Mueller, DPT, MS, PHRC Encinitas I’m Jandra, and I am a pelvic floor physical therapist here at PHRC, and the Director of PHRC Encinitas. I am very excited to announce that I have just completed my Master of Science degree in Integrative Health and Nutrition from Maryland University of Integrative Health.  A little about me: a few years …

View Post

PHRC is Open and Policy Updates

In pelvic floor physical therapy by Stephanie Prendergast2 Comments

The past month has been a trying time in the world. Our company has clinics in California, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire and while physical therapy is considered an essential business and permitted to be open, we chose to close 8 of the 9 clinics due to COVID19 uncertainties. Fortunately we have been able to offer telehealth appointments to our patients …

View Post

Pregnancy Hormones 101

In Pregnancy and Postpartum Pelvic Health by pelv_admin4 Comments

Pregnancy is wild. Someone is walking around growing a human being. It blows my mind every time I see a pregnant person and here at The Pelvic Health & Rehabilitation Center, we get to see a lot of pregnant people!  Now a lot of things happen during pregnancy, and hormones are a big key player in the process. You may …

View Post

Pelvic Health Products We Love: Part Two

In Pelvic Health by Jandra Mueller3 Comments

By Jandra Mueller, DPT, MS, PHRC Encinitas Here at PHRC we regularly discover all sorts of new and cool products that are available for people’s pelvic health needs. I am amazed at some of the products available and that are being developed and am so thankful there are people that are creating these products because they are SOOO helpful!  Pelvic …

View Post

Pelvic Health Products We Love: Part One

In Pelvic Health by Jandra Mueller1 Comment

By Jandra Mueller, DPT, MS, PHRC Encinitas Here at PHRC we regularly discover all sorts of new and cool products that are available for people’s pelvic health needs. I am amazed at some of the products available and that are being developed and am so thankful there are people that are creating these products because they are SOOO helpful!  Pelvic …

View Post

Thinking Beyond the Dilators: How Vicki Beat Vaginismus

In Vaginismus by pelv_adminLeave a Comment

By Morgan Conner, DPT, PHRC Los Gatos Sadly, the starting point of this success story is not novel to me as a pelvic floor physical therapist or for many who struggle with primary vaginismus. However, this story has a happy ending (pun very much intended!) as well as an interesting middle. When Vicki (not her real name) married her husband …

View Post

Success Story: How Jennifer Beat Endometriosis

In Endometriosis by Jandra Mueller1 Comment

By Jandra Mueller, DPT, MS, PHRC Encinitas Jennifer was referred to PHRC by her urogynecologist who diagnosed her with interstitial cystitis/painful bladder syndrome (IC/PBS). For more information on this condition, check out Melinda’s webinar on IC/PBS.  She was diagnosed with IC in 2012/2013 because she had been experiencing significant cramping in her bladder, as well as urinary urgency and frequency. …

View Post

Early Trauma and Its Effect on Chronic Urogenital Pain

In Pelvic Pain by Elizabeth Akincilar6 Comments

By: Elizabeth Akincilar, PHRC Cofounder Another October, another International Pelvic Pain Society Annual Scientific Meeting has come and gone. This year, we gathered in Toronto, Canada to learn about the latest and greatest in the world of pelvic pain. It seemed fitting that the first lecture of the general meeting would discuss possible early contributors to chronic urogenital pain.  Dr. …

View Post

Summary from IPPS 2019: Chronic Pain in Endometriosis

In Endometriosis by pelv_admin2 Comments

By: Morgan Conner, DPT, PHRC Los Gatos In October I had the pleasure of attending the International Pelvic Pain Society’s Scientific Meeting with a number of my colleagues here at PHRC. On the second day of the main conference, Catherine Allaire MDCM, FRCSC gave the James E. Carter keynote lecture titled Endometriosis: Towards Prevention of Chronic Pain. There were two …

View Post

Battle of The Sexes: Do Gender and Sex influence Pain?

In Pelvic Pain by pelv_admin3 Comments

At PHRC, our therapists treat both men and women with pelvic pain conditions. Many of my patients are surprised to hear that men and women have almost the same pelvic floor muscles (with some minor variations).   If you were to ask me if I thought there was a big difference between treating women with pelvic pain vs men with …

View Post

PHRC is BUSY this fall!

In Pelvic Health by pelv_adminLeave a Comment

A lot is going on this quarter and frankly, every quarter here at PHRC. Here is what you need to know! New faces! PHRC welcomes administrative assistant Emily Schwerdtfeger to Westlake Village and pelvic floor physical therapist Karah Charette to Walnut Creek and Berkeley. Jandra Mueller, pelvic floor specialist will also rejoin the team. New office! Speaking of Jandra, on …

View Post

Gotta Go Right Now: Urinary Urgency Explained

In Female Interstitial Cystitis / Painful Bladder Syndrome, Stress Urinary Incontinence, Urinary urgency by Melinda FontaineLeave a Comment

By: Melinda Fontaine, DPT, PHRC Walnut Creek You know that feeling when you just drank the equivalent to a big gulp and you haven’t had a bathroom break in over four hours. That sensation of your body telling you to get to the bathroom ASAP is called “urgency.” In case you wonder if urgency and the frequent need to urinate …

View Post

Why Does the Area Between My Balls and My Butt Hurt? Tyler’s Male Pelvic Pain Success Story

In Male Interstitial Cystitis / Nonbacterial Chronic Prostatitis / Chronic Pelvic Pain Syndrome, Male Pelvic Pain, Male Pudendal Neuralgia by pelv_admin5 Comments

When I first discussed sharing Tyler’s story on this blog, we talked about why men are not aware of pelvic floor PT. We talked about how most websites list  “chronic prostatitis” or “male pelvic pain syndrome” to define his symptoms. He shared with me what men are most likely typing into Google when looking for treatment for symptoms similar to …